I’ve done it! In our COVID world of 2020, having no accommodation booked in advance is not the best option for a touring cyclist so I have spent a few days sorting out my overnight stays. As you can see it will be a mixture of Warmshowes, campsites, youth hostels and one night with a friend in my old stomping ground of Reading. Some cheap – very cheap! – train tickets have been purchased and all I need to do now is start pedalling…
| Date | From | To | km | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday 24th | Huddersfield | Liverpool | – | Train |
| “ | Liverpool | Prestatyn | 71 | Warmshowers host |
| Tuesday 25th | Prestatyn | Holyhead | 75 | Warmshowers host |
| Wednesday 26th | Holyhead | Caernarfon | 93 | Warmshowers host |
| Thursday 27th | Caernarfon | Dolgellau | 80 | Torrent Walk Campsite |
| Friday 28th | Dolgellau | Llanidloes | 62 | Dol-Llys Farm Campsite |
| Saturday 29th | Llanidloes | Glasbury | 67 | River Cabin Camping |
| Sunday 30th | Glasbury | Cardiff | 97 | Sleeperz Hotel |
| Monday 31st | Cardiff | Bath | 94 | YHA Bath |
| Tuesday 1st | Bath | Reading | 127 | Friend’s house |
| Wednesday 2nd | Reading | London | 74 | YHA Central London |
| Thursday 3rd | London | Halifax | – | Train home |
…but going back to the cost thing; this is something that I don’t usually manage to work out in advance but this time I can and it really does show how money can be saved if you travel by bicycle and are willing to camp for some of the time. Here is the cost breakdown:
| Date | Destination | Travel / Accommodation | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday 24th | Liverpool | Train (Trans Pennine) | ยฃ11 |
| “ | Prestatyn | Warmshowers host | ยฃ0 |
| Tuesday 25th | Holyhead | Warmshowers host | ยฃ0 |
| Wednesday 26th | Caernarfon | Warmshowers host | ยฃ0 |
| Thursday 27th | Dolgellau | Torrent Walk Campsite | ยฃ10 |
| Friday 28th | Llanidloes | Dol-Llys Farm Campsite | ยฃ9 |
| Saturday 29th | Glasbury | River Cabin Camping | ยฃ10 |
| Sunday 30th | Cardiff | Sleeperz Hotel | ยฃ42 |
| Monday 31st | Bath | YHA Bath | ยฃ39 |
| Tuesday 1st | Reading | Friend’s house | ยฃ0 |
| Wednesday 2nd | London | YHA Central London | ยฃ35 |
| Thursday 3rd | Halifax | Train home (Grand Central) | ยฃ28 |
So for the accommodation, that’s an average of ยฃ15 per night and for the train travel just ยฃ39. When I took the train from Liverpool to Huddersfield a couple of weeks ago with the bike, I paid ยฃ32 by purchasing the ticket on the day itself. Most LNER trains quote prices from Kings Cross to West Yorkshire well in excess of ยฃ100; choosing to go with Grand Central and getting the same journey for ยฃ28 is the bargain of the trip!
The downside of booking in advance is the loss of flexibility but needs must…
great to see that you have got it all booked in advance. looking forward to reading the trip as you go along
I have to say that it takes an element of ‘worry’ out of the daily cycling and it was interesting comparing the first half of the trip to Edinburgh and Belfast where I had pre-booked campsites with the second half when I was booking accommodation as I cycled. I ended up taking last-minute options which increased the cycling / cost / hassle… But it’s not something I could do on a very long trip.
Looks good. Half heartedly looking at the Wales N-S myself so will interested in your blog.
Watch this space! I should be following the Lon Las Cymru pretty much continuously from Holyhead to Cardiff. All the accommodation that I have booked is very close to my route. I’ll try and keep you updated. ๐
Looks a great trip! That Wales End-to-End is definitely on my radar too (albeit Chepstow to Holyhead). Taking all the camping gear is a bit of a faff but that extra flexibility (mixing outdoors with indoors) is priceless. And like you, I’m quite happy to travel fully loaded and leisurely. I look forward to reading the blog and seeing the videos! (And I hope you get better weather than on the Edinburgh trip…)
Thanks Rob. Could the weather be worse? (Well probably yes bearing in mind it is Wales…)